HOTELS

History of the Hotel

In 1978 a vision of the owner of the company, Antonios Mousamas, became reality. On a privately owned plot of land, the first foundations were laid for the construction of one of the most modern hotels in Athens for its time, the Holiday Inn Athens at 50 Michalakopoulou Street in Ilisia.

Antonios Mousamas, owner of the Athens Quarries of the same name and later of the Lycabettus Hotel on Valaoritou Street in Athens, is looking forward to something new for Greek standards, by bringing one of the largest hotel chains in the world, the Intercontinental Hotels Group (Six Continents) for the first time in Greece.

The hotel has 193 rooms and approximately 2,500 sqm of meeting rooms, of which 2,000 sqm are naturally lit. One of the elements that characterize the hotel throughout its operation is its pioneering in different areas. For example, Holiday Inn was the first hotel in Athens to implement the ISO 9001 system, which was later introduced to all other hotels as a sign of superior service quality. It was also the first hotel to install the hybrid thermal energy generation system, which was operational in 2010-2011. It took 8 full years for this innovative technology to be adopted in a large part of the hotel market in Greece. Many innovations, especially in technological equipment, have been used in the hotel in the events and conferences section.

History of the building reconstruction

In 1978 the first foundations were laid for the construction of the hotel in Michalakopoulou Street under the design and supervision of the architect Petros Pikionis, son of the famous architect Dimitrios Pikionis and designer of the Pavillion in Delphi, on behalf of the Greek National Tourism Organisation. The Civil Engineer who undertook the reconstruction of the hotel was Th.G. Voudiklaris.

In 1980 the opening of the Holiday Inn, the first hotel of the Intercontinental Hotels Group (Six Continents) in Greece, takes place.

In 1997, the hotel was returned to full operation after a 2 billion drachmas renovation and the work lasted about 2 years. The project was carried out under the supervision of the ACT design office and the decorator Marcellus Galanos. Noteworthy are the works of the famous sculptor Andreas Lolis that adorn various areas of the hotel.

In 2008 it was completely reconstructed and rebranded as Crowne Plaza Athens City Centre which is again owned by the IHG group chain. A complete renovation and upgrade was carried out within seven months, with two partial deliveries and without interrupting the operation of the hotel.

Specifically, structural reinforcement works, facade cladding, complete reconstruction of rooms - entrance - lobby, change of pool location, roof garden configuration, renovation of common - auxiliary and other areas of the hotel as well as the construction of two new staircases (escape exits) were carried out. The total renovated area of the property is 19.700 sqm. and was realized with the collaboration of the decorator Marcellus Galanos and the architect Michel De Landtsheer, the supervision of the technician Ioannis Keskinoglou and the construction team of the company TERNA.

The Crowne Plaza premises have hosted political, social and cultural events. Artists, famous athletes, politicians, successful businessmen have honoured the hotel with their presence over the years, either with their own events or by attending events at the hotel.

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Crowne Plaza Athens